Adelaide Guitar Festival hits right notes with 2018 lineup

Since its inaugural event in 2007, the four day biennial festival has become the most significant of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. From rockabilly to rock, soul to blues, classical to country and everything in between, the 2018 Adelaide Guitar Festival sees a diverse mix of local, national and international artists across all genres of guitar hit the Adelaide Festival Centre from August 9 to 12.

Adelaide Festival Centre CEO and Artistic Director, Douglas Gautier, said that calibre of this year’s lineup is “extraordinary”.

“This, combined with the community engagement elements of the program, makes [the Adelaide Guitar Festival] an accessible, entertaining and worldclass event,” said Gautier in a release.

Some of the artists featured at this year’s festival include Australian guitar legend Tommy Emmanuel, alongside guest guitarists Pedro Javier Gonzalez and Richard Smith in a grand  opening night performance. Grammy award-winning legend Albert Lee will celebrate his 75^th birthday and show exactly why his work has included collaborations with Eric Clapton and Joe Cocker.

Television and media personality Julia Zemiro also joins the festival this year bringing her irreverent brand of interviewing to the artists in a free public event as well as hosting the festival finale. As for Adelaide musicians, Wanderers, Kelly Menhennett and Hana and Jessie-Lee are some of the many to take the stage in August.

Other sure festival favourites include Kaki King with her genre-bending work and equally impressive visuals, legendary American composer and Tom Waits collaborator Marc Ribot, and the celebration of women in music with Perth’s Abbe May performing alongside a host of female performers at Clam Jam. The Guitar Festival Symphony Gala will also be another highlight, as will the festival finale featuring South Africa’s Derek Gripper in his only festival appearance.

This year’s festival will also take place in concert with the return of local gig program Guitars in Bars from July 13 to 29 and Resonance, which will see wold-class musicians play live in hospitals, community centres, and aged care facilities from July 28 until August 10.

Adelaide Guitar Festival
August 9 to 12
Adelaide Festival Centre, King William Street
adelaideguitarfestival.com.au